My projects are located in areas that do not normally see earthquakes and I have not had to restrain equipment before. Why am I being asked to do so now?
ANSWER:
In reviewing seismic events on a worldwide basis, it has been found that a tremendous amount of damage has occurred as the result of only moderately sized earthquakes in low seismic areas where little or no seismic protection was incorporated during construction. In addition, as the stresses in the earth’s crust increase with time, many areas with infrequent earthquakes have also suffered when larger events have finally occurred. This has been deemed unacceptable by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), the regulatory group that is driving the code requirements.